


Still Too Close to Call

by rightpastthewaffles



Category: Veep
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-19
Updated: 2016-02-24
Packaged: 2018-05-21 14:05:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 10,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6054390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rightpastthewaffles/pseuds/rightpastthewaffles
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Amy keeps having to remind herself that she’s lucky she isn’t going to prison like Ericsson, but it’s difficult, since she’s depending on Dan to help her keep her TV work going. Now, she owes him more than one, and she wonders if that’s been his plan all along. Indebted to Dan Egan. He is such a shit.</p><p>Following the events of Election Night.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought it’d be interesting to have Amy lobbying with Dan before heading back to Selina’s team. 
> 
> I had a lot of fun writing this. I’d love to know what you think. I hope you will enjoy it! :)
> 
> Thank you so much to all my betas for your help!

On most days, Amy and Dan get their coffee in the break lounge at PKM Offices because it’s more convenient, but Amy decides to pick up their usual coffee order (hers, an Americano, triple shot, and occasionally an almond croissant and sparkling water, and his, a double Espresso, and sometimes a plain bagel) this morning.

She doesn’t know what has gotten into her, but she does feel a twinge of guilt for leaving him in the middle of the broadcast with Matty Curtis, the online statistics savant, after all that time they spent compiling and analyzing data.

But like she said, she had spent a third of her life leading up to that night. She had to see how things were going to play out with Selina.

Amy’s not sure if Dan gets her message about putting in a good word for her with Greg. He still hasn’t responded even after she texts him and says that she’s coming to pick him up like she usually does. It’s not until she texts, _I’m bringing coffee_ , that her phone finally buzzes.

Amy switches on Crock FM as she pulls in front of Dan’s apartment and leaves the engine idling.

Suddenly, Selina’s voice fills the car.

“…Who so successfully ran my campaign until she became unwell.”

“President Selina Meyer—” Vic, one of the hosts, says, as Amy tears off a piece of her croissant and pops it into her mouth.

“Or, should we say _former_ President Selina Meyer?” Rod, the second host, jokingly interjects.

Amy rolls her eyes.

“I don’t know about that Rod, the House races are still too close to call. President Selina Meyer was joined onstage by her former Chief of Staff and Campaign Manager, Amy Brookheimer, who made headlines for her hasty departure from the White House several months ago. Press Secretary Mike McLintock issued a statement citing that she was too unstable to carry on with the campaign.”

Amy tears off another piece of her croissant, this time a bit more forcefully.

“Brookheimer, who has been in hot water recently, after being called to testify in front of Congress, also pulled a disappearing act during last night’s CNN broadcast.”

" _Amazing Amy_ ,” Rod suggests.  

“ _Gone Girl_ ,” Vic says, laughing, and she can practically hear them high-fiving each other.

Just then, Dan comes down the stairs. It’s clear from the headphones hanging around his neck, and the smirk on his face, that he’s been listening too.

Dan removes his headphones, as he gets in the car and shuts the door.

“Morning,” he says, as he wraps the headphone cord around his phone and stuffs it into his pocket.

“Morning,” Amy repeats, as she hands him a cup from her cup holder.

“Thanks for the coffee.”

“You’re welcome,” she says slowly.

Amy is surprised that Dan isn’t more upset, especially seeing as how he froze her out until this morning.

“ _And_ for leaving me at the studio during the closest election in living memory. Really great teamwork.”

_That’s the one. That’s the one._

“You know, I’m really enjoying this morning’s segment by the way, _Amazing Amy_ ,” he says.

“Yeah, I figured,” she says.

Amy makes a face when she takes a sip of her coffee.

“This one’s yours,” she says. She hands him the cup and they switch.

Dan drinks directly from the one she gave him, not even bothering to wipe her lipstick off the lid.

“Well, if it makes you feel any better, I didn’t exactly fare that well either,” she says.

“Yeah, like I wanted to spend my night with the B team.”

Dan always pretends he doesn’t care what’s going on with Selina’s team, but Amy knows that he still longs to be involved even though he’d never admit it.

“I mean, Leslie Kerr, really? I haven’t been fucked like this since they scapegoated me after the data breach and since...well...” Dan suddenly trails off, cocking an eyebrow.

“Do you want to hear what happened, or not?” Amy says, trying to break whatever school boy fantasy he’s having, before he can get a hard-on while sitting in her car.

“Let me guess, Mike launched into “God Save the South” again?”

“No, but he wore shoes that were incompatible with the rug and shocked me. _Twice_ ,” she says and Dan scoffs.

“So, what else happened?” He says. The look of annoyance on his face dissipates and is replaced by genuine curiosity.

“It was like Murphy’s law or something when I got to the hotel because of course the first person that I heard was Karen. I would have headed straight back to the studio if it wasn’t for Sue. Then, Mike ran off to the soda machines to get away from Karen and that’s when I saw Selina. The reception that Selina got in Helsinki was warmer than the one I got, by the way.”  

“Well, you did say that she was the worst thing to happen to this country since food in buckets. And maybe slavery.”

“Yeah, I know… And then they called Pennsylvania. Selina was about to concede, when Mike burst back in, all sweaty and panicked, saying that Pennsylvania had been the wrong call.”

“Yeah, I was the one who called him with the news,” Dan says, with raised eyebrows, looking proud of himself.

Amy ignores him.

“And then, it came down to Virginia. We found out that if Selina won Virginia, it would be a tie and that Tom James could actually become President. And then Mike made Selina cry.”

“He made her cry?”

“Actual tears, not manufactured ones,” she says.

“And that’s when she hugged me. I could barely keep her from falling and then, in order to break her fall, _Gary—_ ”

"Tried to grab her ass?”

“Yeah,” Amy says, while nodding.

“Then, I told her, with all due respect, that she needed to get her shit together and to ma’am up. And of course while this was happening, Tom James ended up sneaking out to the rally thanks to Karen. You know, I think I’d actually be impressed if there wasn’t a possibility of him taking the presidency from Selina after climbing through the backdoor. I can’t believe that I pushed for him so hard.”

“Well, he _was_ the best candidate. I gotta say, though, I really admire the guy.”

Dan _would_.

“So, what happened last night with Greg?” Amy asks, treading cautiously.

Dan tells her that he got her message when the production crew started to clean up around the news desk, but that he didn’t get the chance to put in a good word because one, he was still really pissed off, and two, Greg was still fuming about Amy’s sudden departure.

He had been making offhand remarks throughout the breaks, like, “This isn’t amateur hour, we’re not going to be singing “Kumbaya” around a fucking campfire,” and, “You know what, let’s just forget the election and make matching friendship bracelets. Then, we can roast marshmallows and paddle our fucking canoes down the lake.”

“Shit,” Amy sighs, and another one of Selina’s soundbites begin to play.

“We did it! We have one more hurdle to overcome. And we shall overcome. One more river to cross. One more mountain to climb. But I have been—”

Dan reaches over and switches the channel. Amy is relieved, but instead of thanking him, she just flips on the signal and waits for a car to pass before pulling away from his apartment.

Amy makes a face as a Sting song begins to play. It’s all guitar riffs and ambient sounds.

“I don’t understand how you could listen to this,” she says.

“If you knew anything about music, Ames, you would know that this is a classic.”

They spend the rest of the ride arguing about the radio.


	2. Chapter 2

Amy’s phone buzzes in her coat pocket after she pulls her car into her relatively new (and Dan’s old) parking space.

“It’s from CNN,” she says, turning to Dan, as they get out and make their way towards the entrance.

“Dear Ms. Brookheimer, We want to thank you for your valuable contribution to CNN as a political analyst,” Amy begins, with her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. Her heels clack loudly against the cement as she accelerates toward the door, with no intention of stopping.

Dan runs ahead and pulls open the door for her as she walks briskly though.

“As one of the world’s leaders in online news and information delivery—”

Amy pauses as she shields her eyes against the stark white intensity of the main hallway.

PKM’s sleek, futuristic design, with it’s wide expanse of windows, is a modern architect’s wet dream. It’s supposed to convey a sense of teamwork and innovation, but she doesn’t understand how anyone can ever see anything in here without sunglasses.

“—We rely on the dedication of our global team of almost 4,000 news professionals and contributors like you. However, we regret to inform you that we will no longer be needing your expertise. We will not be asking you back for future segments. Sincerely, The CNN Team,” she finishes, as her eyes finally adjust to the brightness.

“The CNN Team? Greg couldn’t even send this himself, he had to get some intern to do it?”

Just then, a tall, leggy blonde approaches them.

“Good morning Amy, Dan. You guys did a really great job last night. Dan, it must have been amazing to be the one to announce such a historic result.

“Thanks Erica,” Dan says, and Amy watches as he turns on the charm.

“I mean, this is the closest election—” Erica begins.

“—in living memory, yeah, you’re absolutely right,” Dan finishes at the same time.

Amy knows that Erica helped him pick out a couple of new suits when he started, and that he hasn’t fucked her yet (It’s a miracle for him, Amy thinks, although it might also have something to do with Sidney and their weird frat bro code), but when Dan flashes Erica a smile that is all teeth and dimples, Amy can’t help but clutch her phone a little tighter.

“Oh, I’m sure it was much better to be at the studio than to be holed up in some hotel with the rest of the team, sharing in something we worked so long and hard for,” Amy says.

Dan grits his teeth.

“But nothing compares to being in the middle of the action. Besides, you’re gonna be back on CNN to talk about how close the House races are, right, Ames?” He says, and Amy’s surprised to find that her phone hasn’t broken in two.

Erica looks back and forth between the two of them before she concedes.

“I guess I better get back to work. I just came over to say congratulations and that Sidney wants to see you in his office,” she says, as Amy and Dan both turn back to face her.

“Great.”

“Thanks,” Dan says, as Erica turns and walks away.

 

* * *

 

“I see the golden kids have arrived,” Sidney says, when Amy and Dan walk into his office.

“Amy, congratulations on making it onto the blogs,” Sidney says. He swings around his desktop screen so she can take a closer look. Several windows are open to new sites such as _The_ _Huffington Post, Politico, and The Hill._

“Batshit Brookheimer, really?” Amy says, as she reads one of the comments.

“And Dan, or, should I say, Leslie Kerr? Amy just won a couple more of your clients.”

“What? _More_ clients?”

“They saw her leaving CNN and joining Selina as an act of loyalty, and seeing as how you weren’t even mentioned…”

Dan turns to glare at Amy and she shoots him a look that means, “I had nothing to do with this.”

“That being said, Amy, some of your clients are a little concerned. They thought that you came off as, how can I put this? Unhinged, unstable, unprofessional.”

Dan snorts and Amy has every intention of kicking him in the shin.

“ _But_ , they’ve decided to stick with you because they’re convinced that she is going to win. You’re clearly valued by the President and they want access. Look, happy clients make us happy, and our pockets happier, so I suggest you hit the airwaves, you know, redeem yourself.”

“Yeah see, that’s the thing…about that, I don’t—” she begins, and she can practically feel Dan’s grin burning a hole in her head.

“Alright, glad to see that we’re all on the same page. Let’s get some talking heads going,” Sidney says. He swivels his desktop back, and Amy and Dan turn to leave.

“Still need me to talk to Greg for you?” Dan says, as they make their way into the main hallway.

“Yeah.”

“Okay, but you owe me,” he says, smirking.

Amy keeps having to remind herself that she’s lucky she isn’t going to prison like Ericsson, but it’s difficult, since she’s depending on Dan to help her keep her TV work going. Now, she owes him more than one, and she wonders if that’s been his plan all along. Indebted to Dan Egan.

He is _such a shit_.


	3. Chapter 3

For the next two days, Amy is slammed with meetings and phone calls from clients who want to meet before Veterans Day weekend.  

Amy is grateful when she is finally able to catch a break.

She and Dan are standing in line at the break lounge and she’s considering adding a fourth shot of espresso to her coffee, when she hears a familiar voice and turns to look at the flat screen TV hanging on the wall.

“…It looks like Meyer might win Mississippi as well, edging her closer to 26, but of course the House races are still too close to call.”

“Even _Matty Curtis_ was invited back? Fox must have had a field day after his predictions on election night and yet, there he is, sitting next to Greg. _Unbelievable_. You know, his website is shit.”

“Let’s get you a decaf,” Dan says, as the coverage cuts to a crowd of people wearing #TeamSelina and #TeamOBrien t-shirts.

“So are you Team Selina or Team O’Brien?” One of the news reporters asks.

After Amy and Dan pick up their coffee, they make their way back into the main lobby. They’re walking past several consultants sitting in the plush white leather couches, when they’re pulled into an unexpected strategy meeting.

Sidney introduces them to two representatives from Hershey Co. who have decided to jump ship after the recent statistics leaning in Selina’s favor.

Amy remembers O’Brien’s campaign stop in Pennsylvania and how he made an uncharacteristic appearance at Hershey Park for a photo-op. He posed with a group of kids and young adults at the small factory, wearing one of those polypropylene bouffant caps and an apron, in a move that was clearly made to appeal to soccer moms and younger voters.  

Selina’s team had been brainstorming for the Israeli Prime Minister’s visit to The White House the next day, when Sue came in to announce that O’Brien was making a speech at Independence National Historical Park near the Liberty Bell.

“Hey, do you think I should dye my mustache?” Mike asked Gary, as Sue switched on the TV and everyone gathered in front of it.

“What are you going to get next Mike? A facelift? Liposuction?” Dan said, before Amy shushed him with an elbow to the ribs.

“Hershey was a determined pioneer who became known for more than just his chocolate. He became known for his generosity, which still touches the lives of thousands,” O’Brien began.

“Oh for fuck’s sake,” Selina said, in disgust.

“The farm boy never had much of a chance for education, but provided that opportunity for others when he and his wife Catherine established the Hershey Industrial School for orphan boys, now known as Milton Hershey School. He then donated all of his wealth and ownership of the company to the school. I had the chance to meet with a wonderful group children yesterday, and want to reiterate my dedication to education reform. I believe that every child should have the equal opportunity to go to school and live up to his or her God-given potential.”

“And there goes the g-bomb,” Amy said.

Amy couldn’t _believe_ that his bullshitting was met with such boisterous applause. One stop to Hershey Park and he becomes Willy fucking Wonka.

O’Brien’s team did get flak from special interest groups, such as The American Diabetes Association, The Campaign to End Obesity, and The American Dental Association after that. And the ads that Selina filmed for her Get Moving campaign suddenly made their rounds again.

O’Brien’s campaign manager must have known that Selina wasn’t going to return to the Keystone State. He decided to take a risk that seemed to pay off at the time.

Amy could picture O’Brien sitting in the campaign bus saying, “Did you see how I appeared to love all those wretched shitnits?” It made Amy want to stick her finger in her mouth.

Luckily, it didn’t pay off. And luckily, Pennsylvania was the wrong call.

“…You can see how this might present a conflict of interest with her Get Moving campaign,” Dan says, bringing her out of her thoughts.

Amy can feel the scales tipping away from their favor.

One of the representatives shifts in his seat and she knows that Sidney is picturing money draining away from his bank account.

“ _However_ ,” Amy says firmly, as she glares at Dan.

“We understand your commitment to corporate social responsibility. We really admire your sustainability strategy. And we will be sure to stress your goals in modernizing cocoa farming to increase farmer incomes, in attracting new farmers, and in improving cocoa growing communities globally.”

“That’s more like it,” the rep says, looking impressed.

“And you’re gonna get us coverage, right?” The second representative asks.

“Oh don’t worry, Ms. Brookheimer here will be sure to mention you on the air,” Dan says, with a shit-eating grin.

She is going to kill Dan. She is going to watch him die and stab him repeatedly to make sure.

“I’m surprised they would let you back into the studio. They made it sound like you were foaming at the mouth. I guess that mental health bill really did work wonders,” the second rep says.

Amy hopes that her grimace somewhat resembles a smile.

“I’m just yanking your chain,” he lets out after a beat and Amy lets out one of her fake laughs, the one reserved for congressmen and meetings like this. They shake hands, sealing the deal.

 

* * *

 

“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” Amy says to Dan as they head towards the dining hall, which is buzzing with activity during the lunch hour rush. There’s dozens of people who are on their cellphones and laptops, and using their downtime to strategize.

“Oh, I take no pleasure in your very public, brutal, and probably career-ending humiliation,” he says, and she rolls her eyes, before heading straight for the salad bar.

Amy thinks that maybe this is payback for the time she made him walk eight blocks away to get ice tea when she pretended to have a miscarriage for Selina. It _was_ the nearest place that had any decent tea. Although, she did milk that for the next few weeks.

She made him comfort her during the middle of another interview. And in addition to making him go on very long food runs, Amy made him publicly run errands for her, like sending out her mail, until the press finally died down.

Amy always made fun of Mike for lying about his dog, but having to keep up the facade was exhausting. She didn’t know how he managed to do it for so long.

She also thinks that maybe she should have been nicer to Dan in Helsinki, especially since she was the one who convinced him to be more like Mike, which led to his entire apology tour.

They’re halfway finished with their lunches, when both of their phones buzz on the table.

“Looks like they’re predicting Louisiana for O’Brien,” he says.

“And Kentucky,” Amy says.

“Well, he _does_ look like Colonel Sanders,” he says, with a shrug and Amy suppresses a smile.

“Crap on my lap,” Dan says suddenly, when he looks back down at his phone.

"What?”

“Sidney said that Yum! Brands, Inc. just walked...Oh, and there goes South Carolina,” he says as he shows her his phone and Amy groans.

“You see, this is why I hate D.C. There’s never any loyalty and the minute that anyone-”

“You’re worried about Selina.”

“No, I’m not worried about Selina because she’s going to win,” Amy says, even though she’s not so sure anymore. “Do you think she’s gonna win?”

“I think that if she wins, our lobbying stock is going to skyrocket,” he says as he uncaps his water bottle and takes a sip.

“Dan, tell me honestly.”

Dan screws the cap back onto the bottle and places it back on the table before responding.

“What’s making you doubt her?”

Both of their phones start to vibrate and Amy gestures to them.

“They’re just predictions, you know that.”

“I know, it’s just—”

“I think that Selina’s gonna win...Which is great for me, because honestly, I’m getting a little tired of kissing O’Brien’s ass,” he says, and Amy feels a bit placated, even though she’d never admit it.

“Alright, we should head out, we have that conference call with General Mills in five minutes,” Dan says, as he gets up.

“Actually, you know what, I’m gonna finish this and then I’ll meet you there,” Amy says, even though she’s done with her salad.

She knows he’s gonna give her a hard time about mentioning clients on the air, and she’s not looking forward to it.

Dan simply reaches down and grabs the last of her croutons slices.

“Are you really gonna-” she protests.

“I’m helping you out, let’s go,” he says as he stuffs it in his mouth and walks away.

Amy doesn’t walk into the conference room until after she knows Dan has been forced to make an uncomfortable amount of small talk about breakfast cereal while waiting for her to arrive.

 

* * *

 

“…That sounds great. I’ll see you then,” Dan says, before he hangs up.

What was that all about?” Amy asks, as she pulls her car up in front of Dan’s apartment.

“You’ll be happy to know that I have a dinner meeting with Greg tonight,” he says as he gets out of her car and fishes out his key.

Amy lets out a sigh of relief.

“Keep me posted,” she says, as she rolls down the passenger door window.

“Will do,” Dan says, as he opens the front door and pushes it open.

“But you still owe me, _Amazing Amy_ ,” he says, as he raises his eyebrows.

Amy knows that she needs to be on her best behavior, but she doesn’t care.

“Fuck point you,” she yells, while flipping him off, and she can she him laughing before he shuts the door.


	4. Chapter 4

Dan doesn’t keep her posted.

The House still has yet to make a decision and Amy’s starting to grow restless.

Somehow, her sister manages to persuade her into going to the mall. The stores are decked out in Christmas decorations even though it’s still November. Sophie wants to stop at Gymboree to pick up a dress for Giselle to wear during their Thanksgiving dinner. Every year, like clockwork, Amy is asked why she isn’t married with kids yet, like her sister, which is something she does _not_ want to think about.  

Amy moves to sit on a bench outside because there are a couple of kids in the store who are playing hide-and-seek under the clothing racks while their parents shop, but now she’s right across from the giant tree, where they have begun setting up Santa’s Winter Wonderland. There’s fake snow and glitter everywhere, the culmination of Amy’s worst nightmares.

Amy makes a face when a kid wandering past with his older brother sticks his tongue out at her. As they stop to marvel at the display, he reaches for a present sitting on one of the many tall stacks placed throughout. When he realizes that he can’t grab it, he starts tugging at the barricades surrounding the display, rattling them.

She decides to take her chances inside.

Sophie hands her several dresses that look exactly the same and Amy has no idea what to say when she holds one up in each hand and asks Amy which one she likes better.

“I don’t know, the one on the right?”

“Really? You think so? I _do_ have a headband that matches this one better. Here, I’ll show you.”

“No, you really don’t have to.”

Amy’s lost track of how many photos she’s seen of her niece. But Sophie just adds the dresses to the pile Amy has in her arms and whips out her phone to show her pictures.

After dozens of photos and what seems like an eternity, Sophie says she doesn’t know which dress to choose and that she’ll come back. They decide to get a bite to eat and Amy suggests a restaurant far, far away from Winter Wonderland. More like Winter Hell.

 

* * *

 

Right as Amy takes a bite of her salad, Sophie realizes that she left her diaper bag in the bathroom.

“Amy, I need you to take Giselle.”

“What?” Amy says, as her eyes widen. She can already feel the panic rise.

“It’ll be just a second, I swear,” Sophie says, as she hands her the stroller.

Sophie is already heading up the escalator when Amy yells that she can go get it instead.

“Shit,” she says, before sending a cursory glance towards the baby. “Sugar,” Amy corrects, even though she knows Giselle can’t actually understand what she’s saying.

Amy has dealt with a lot of crisis situations in her lifetime, but she doesn’t think anything can ever prepare her for having to deal with kids.

Which is why she resorts to small talk.

“This salad is really good, you should try some. You know, in a couple years, give or take…”

Giselle just kicks out her tiny feet.

“How about the _Power Rangers_ , do you like the _Power Rangers_? Their suits are pretty cool. Colorful. You like colors, right?”

 _Jesus_ , Amy thinks. Her small talk is starting to sound like Selina’s.

Amy keeps nervously glancing towards the escalator, but Sophie still hasn’t made her way back yet.

At the 15 minute mark, Giselle starts to fuss and Amy can feel herself beginning to shallow breathe. Amy tries to push the stroller slowly back and forth away from her, but when that doesn’t work, she pulls the stroller back toward her.

“It’s okay, please don’t cry. Your mommy’s gonna be back soon, and then Aunt Amy is going to kill her.”

Giselle suddenly grabs a hold of Amy’s index finger with her hand and Amy freezes, not knowing what to do.

It’s not exactly unpleasant. It’s not exactly pleasant either, but at least Giselle has stopped fussing.

The snap of a camera phone suddenly goes off behind her and when Amy turns around, she feels as though she has never been more happy to see her sister in her entire life.

“Thank God.” Amy says, as relief flows through every fiber of her being.

“Where the _hell_ were you? Also, please delete that.”

“Someone took the bag to the lost and found, so I had to go all the way there,” Sophie says, as she places the diaper bag in the basket underneath the stroller.

“But it’s okay because you enjoy spending time with your Aunt Amy, don’t you?” She says, in a sing-song voice, turning her attention to Giselle.

 

* * *

 

“…So, have you heard anything from Dan?” Sophie asks, trying to sound casual.

“Nope. But I don’t really want to talk about him right now,” Amy says.

Work and Dan seem to be 95% of their conversations lately. Sophie waits for it.

“I swear he’s doing it on purpose. He’s just upset because he lost some more clients. The first of which, I won fair and square by the way.”

“Amy, wasn’t he the one who introduced you to lobbying?” Sophie says.

He _was_ the one who introduced her to lobbying. Amy remembers how after she stormed out of the Presidential Suite, she spent the next several days in a weird state of calm, until it wore off and the full realization of what she did finally hit her.

So _this_ is the Wasteland, she remembered thinking. Amy finally knew what it was like to be in political career purgatory and it fucking sucked.

It didn’t help when Sue left her a message, something about how this is what happens when she lets the pressures of the office get to her, and then something about Amy stress eating and having a life outside of the office, which gave her flashbacks to the Vic Allen dinner.

The worst thing about it, was that Sue was right. She barely had a life outside. She didn’t go to the gym, she didn’t go to the movies. Before, she was barely at home, but after quitting, she was at home all the time.

Amy remembers how she tore up her apartment trying to find the business card Melissa Conners had given her during the team’s visit to Clovis after she turned them down.

Melissa handed it to her after she finished flushing the space toilet for Selina and they were getting ready to leave.

“I thought you said that you could buy a thousand Amys,” Amy said.

“I know what I said...She doesn’t value you. Just in case you change your mind.” Melissa said.

Amy hated everything about Clovis, the legos, the sleeping pods, the ping pong table. She knew the sheer positivity would break her, but they _had_ offered her a fuckload of money.

Except she couldn’t find the card. She might have thrown it away because she was convinced that she was going to become campaign manager.

The panic began to seep in, until she received a text from Dan.

_You want to make some money?_

“Yeah, and the money’s great,” Amy says, truthfully (the new pieces in her wardrobe, including her gray Diane Von Furstenberg floral appliqué pullover, can attest to that), while sidestepping the part about Dan.

“It’s just…”

“Nine years is a really long time. And you were with her since her senatorial run, this is everything you’ve ever worked for,” Sophie says.

Away from Selina, Dan seems to be flourishing, his longing to be back on the team aside (Amy remembers the look of almost glee on his face when he got to fire that stupid t-shirt cannon. That is, if he showed any emotions at all), but Amy feels lost, like she’s drifting without an anchor or something.

That night, Amy didn’t hesitate, she didn’t waver. She knew she had to go. She didn’t know what came over her when she was in the car with Sue and started singing “Broward County,” but it might have been elation.

“It just felt right, you know?”

“I know,” Sophie says, nodding her head, as the waiter comes with their check.

“Well, this wasn’t terrible.” Amy says.

“It could have been worse.” Sophie says, shrugging her shoulders.

“So are you gonna come back to get a dress for Giselle or are you—”

“Oh, I already bought her a dress.”

“Then what was the point of all this?”

“I saw clips of your interview on CNN this morning and it was worse than I thought. Just wanted to make sure you weren’t going to pull a Britney and shave your head or anything.”

Amy is grateful that Sophie managed to get her out of the apartment. She always feels better after talking to her sister, but she doesn’t tell her that.

“I’m surprised you even watch CNN.”

“Funny,” Sophie says.


	5. Chapter 5

It’s been almost four days and Dan still hasn’t answered her calls or messages.

It’s feels like an eternity, but Amy always had a warped sense of time. She thought she and Dan had gone on three dates, even though they dated for a week. Now that she thinks about it, it might have been longer than that. She also thought that she and Ed had been together only three months, when it had actually been a year.

This must be how Selina feels when she spends time with Catherine, it always seems longer.

Amy takes a long shower to avoid checking her Blackberry. She puts on the gray heather crew neck sweatshirt she got from Yale Law and matching navy leggings. And her hair, which is parted to one side and slightly tousled from her running her fingers through it, instead of slick straight like how she usually wears it in the office, is almost dry by the time she decides to leave a voice memo about going to the grocery store to pick up some more wine. She leaves a second one reminding her to call Sue back about the job at United Seasonings.

Amy caves and checks her phone again, then her second phone. No messages. _Fuck_. Amy tosses her second phone into the bottom drawer of her bedside dresser and places her main one on top of the dresser, next to her alarm clock. She makes small pinching motions with both her hands before balling them into fists and throwing them up, forcing herself to walk away from both of her phones.

She’s about to head into the living room to check the coverage on CNN, when her phone buzzes on the dresser, bathing the corner of her bedroom in a blue glow.

It takes all of her willpower not to launch herself at it. If it’s a telemarketer, she swears she will toss it out the window.

It’s not a telemarketer.

When she picks up her phone, there’s a text with only three words.

_Hey, I’m outside._

 

* * *

 

 

Amy swings open the door and he’s standing there in a baseball tee, jeans, and a hoodie, with his leather laptop bag slung over his shoulder and a large pizza box in his hands. Balanced on top of it, are two paper cups and straws still covered in sleeves. She tries to ignore how good he looks in casual clothes.

“It’s about time,” she says, with her relief winning over her slight irritation.

It takes a second for him to take her in and he can’t help but eye what she’s wearing. His eyes automatically scan her from her hair down to the insignia on her sweatshirt, to the school logo on her leggings.

“Nice leggings,” Dan says, smirking.

Amy rolls her eyes and grabs the cups and straws in a way that means, “Just get inside.”

As she places the cups and straws down on her dining room table, he shuts the door, then drops off his laptop bag on the couch across from her office desk, like he’s done a millions times before.

Over the years, they’d meet at restaurants, bars, his place and hers, to strategize over meals. But slightly less so when she started dating Ed. And slightly more so, when she stopped.

“I got your twenty seven messages. Didn’t think you’d miss me so much,” he says, as he sets the pizza down on the dining room table and pulls out a chair.

“Dream the fuck on, Dan,” she says, as she heads into the kitchen.

“So, what did Greg say?” Amy says, as she comes back through the swinging door with paper plates and napkins. She slides him a plate and sits across from him, filling her own.

“Greg said that he’d have to get back to me.”

“Seriously? That’s all he said after all this time?”

What Dan doesn’t mention, is that he has been trying to win over Greg for the past several days.

“What, are you guys fucking, or something?” Greg asks, after Dan invites him out for lunch the day after Veterans Day.

Greg only mentions summer camp once. At least he’s making progress.

“Well, he wasn’t very happy about the stunt that you pulled.”

“He said I was _shrill_ ,” Amy says, as she grabs a straw and pounds it onto the table, removing the sleeve. She punches the straw into the lid of her drink with a little more vigor than necessary.

“Amy, you can’t just leave in the middle of a broadcast on election night, during a race as tight as this one,” he says with a mouth full of pizza.

Dan goes on about how Greg is concerned about their public image and something about Amy’s mental health, and it takes her two bites of pizza and a sip of her drink, before she realizes that Dan is up to something. He _always_ complains when she orders New Haven style, because, “Who has to ask for mozzarella as a topping?” Amy takes a quick glance at her drink, and the logo on the cup confirms that this is from the sandwich shop eight blocks away from the EEOB. He might as well have sidled up to her.

"Okay, what do you want?” She asks, as Dan finishes up his first slice.

He reaches over to grab another slice.

“Well, seeing as how you owe me one. Actually, now, it’s more than one,” he says, smirking. She _knew_ it.

_Dan is a shit._

“If I talk to Greg, and you get the job, _you_ talk me up to your clients at Fycorps, Killick  & Company, and Hemmings, and I get my holy trinity back,” Dan says.

Dan’s a pretty good negotiator even though she hates to admit it (he managed to talk her into a suicide pact with Mike. More like Mike forced his way in and look how that turned out), but she knows this is a shitty deal, at least on his part. With her away from TV, she’d be guaranteed to lose her clients and then he’d get them back anyway, unless he managed to really fuck up (which knowing him, is entirely possible).

And it’s not the first time he’s done something like that. He got her out of having to stay with her family at the hospital. And her sister is right, he _did_ introduce her to lobbying, which is how she got his clients in the first place.

So, why is he doing it?

Whatever the reason is, Amy knows that she has limited options right now.

“Fine,” she says.

“But what happens if I don’t get the job and Selina loses?”

“You add Charlotte and Kim to your contacts yet? O’Brien seemed to like your abilities to compromise.”

If Dan thinks she is going to turn to the O’Brien camp, he is wrong.  

“I’d rather make out with Karen,” she says, before taking another bite of her pizza.

“Oh come on, Ames, you tried to poach Chung, remember? Besides, I’m sure you’ve done worse things,” Dan says.

Amy suddenly gets an image of him collapsing to the floor in London, and her practically carrying him to the taxicab, and leaving him at the hospital. She could still hear his heart monitor beeping erratically, as she strode down the hallway, high on victory. It wasn’t until two weeks into the campaign that she felt as though something was missing. But that is _not_ why she hired Dan 2.0. _Someone_ had to pick up his slack. He was too busy growing that thing on his face, which, unfortunately, didn’t make him look any less attractive to her.

“Wait, have you?” Dan says, looking genuinely interested.

“You mean aside from having dinner with you and O’Brien, faking a miscarriage, and straight-out lying to Congress?” Amy says, listing a few of the hundreds of things she has done, while sacrificing her morals for Selina’s career.

“Amy, I’m serious, have you? Dan says, before his face lights up, like he’s suddenly come up with a brilliant idea.

“You know, you still owe me one.”

_A massive and total shit._

Amy is not going to tell him just because she owes him one, but she can hear his snarky comments now. She never heard the end of it when he first became campaign manager.

Amy clears her throat and leans forward.

“When Chung was gunning for Vice President, Selina wanted me to have Scott put together a file on him. Scott’s research said that Chung was born back in China before his dad got his citizenship, making him ineligible to run. Well, _I_ was the one who did the research and used Scott to cover me.”

“Wow, Brookheimer. That is some _transcendent bullshitting_. It’s a miracle they believed your testimony.”

_When you first meet him, you think, surely to God this man can’t be as big a shit as he seems, but he is._

“Fine,” Amy says, crossing her arms. “But if I tell you one of the worst things that I’ve done, then you have to tell me what you’ve done.”

“Fine,” he says, before she can take it back.

“Fine,” Amy parrots back at him, just so she can have the last word.

Amy takes a deep breath and then slowly exhales.

“I was the one who leaked the Ray Whelans story after you became campaign manager.”

“What?” Dan says, looking like his brain is having a hard time processing information, or like Mike does on a daily basis.

“I’m the super hot British chick that gave Jonah the story,” Amy tries again.

“Wait, what?”

“I was Jonah’s filthy Mary Poppins,” she says in a British accent, as she looks down at the stain-free rug she bought in order to replace the one Mike had spilled red wine on ages ago.

When Amy finally looks back up at him, Dan looks like Jonah the time that she broke him.

She’s not sure which is worse.

“Dan,” Amy says, trying to get him to snap out of it.  

“Dan,” she repeats, this time a little louder, but he doesn’t move.

“DAN,” Amy yells, and he blinks several times, finally getting a grip.

“That was- I have  _never_ been more impressed by you than I am _right now_. Holy shit, that was beyond fucking dark, Ames. And also _fucking hot_.”

If Amy didn’t know any better, she might have actually thought he looked a little turned on.

“What is _wrong_ with you?” You know what, rhetorical question. It’s your turn,” she says, even though now, she’s not sure she wants to know.

“Remember when Selina chose me to go to Maddox’s house?” Dan says.

Amy remembers that clearly. It was bad enough that Selina chose her to stay behind, but then she spent the whole day an anxious wreck, preparing for dinner, or at least trying to find people who could actually cook for her at the last minute, so that everyone would support her as campaign manager. She wanted it to be perfect. She couldn’t go around being nice to people because Dan was already doing that. She remembers variations of “How are you doing, you doing alright?” and, “Hey buddy, you want anything else?” directed to everyone in the campaign office.

“After Selina and I came back, we went into her office and I told her that it was going to be a very intimate relationship, and that I had to get in there. I asked her to tell me stuff that even Gary doesn’t know about but-”

“Wait, did she tell you about setting Andrew’s car on fire?”

“You _knew_ about that?” Dan says, looking not offended, because he doesn’t do offended, but affronted.

“Of course I _knew._ So, what happened?”

“She had me go first, so I told her that when I was a kid, a bunch of older kids dared me to kill a stray dog and I did.”

_Cause like if there was a book with covers made of shit, you’d think, “That’s intriguing. I wonder what’s in this book that they saw fit to give it covers made of pure shit._

“You _killed a dog_?”

Amy’s head starts to spin.

“And all of this happened after we almost…fucked...”  

_And then you open it, and shit._

“Is _that_ how you became campaign manager?”

Amy doesn’t know why she’s so surprised. After finding out that Mike masturbated in her bathroom, nothing is sacred anymore. Granted, it was for an IVF, but still.

“We didn’t actually _go through with it_ , I kinda got freaked out by the whole car thing and-”

“What, are you expecting a congratulations? A 21-gun salute? A fucking motorcade?”

She can’t stop picturing them fucking, him saying, “You like that, ma’am?”

Amy suddenly gets the urge to scream into the night.

“I have to go,” she says, as she gets up, pushing the chair out behind her, and starts towards the door.

“Amy, this is _your_ apartment,” Dan says, as gets up.

It takes her a second to realize that he’s right, before she walks towards him and starts to shove him backwards towards the door the same way she did to Kent when she found out he was polling other potential running mates.

“Then, _you_ have to go.”

“Wait, Amy.”

 _Jesus_ , Dan thinks. How can someone so tiny use so much force?

Suddenly, he stops struggling against her and she runs into him. When she glances up at him, he has a look she swears she hasn’t seen since since he left abruptly during Mike’s wedding with no explanation (she later found out when he showed her his recordings of Jonah being kicked out of the White House on his iPad).

“Amy, excuse me, I’m about to be brilliant,” he says, as he manages to get free out of her grasp and heads towards the kitchen.

“Dan, what are you doing?” She says, as he pushes the swinging door open and disappears behind it.

Amy follows him and when she pushes the door open, she sees him rummaging through her fridge, like he has permission or something, even though he’s been through it dozens of times during their strategy sessions.

“Dan what the _hell_ are you-”

Dan pulls out a bottle of wine and raises his eyebrows.


	6. Chapter 6

Amy and Dan end up on the floor of her kitchen with their backs pressed against the island, passing a bottle of wine back and forth. He takes the first swig, a large one, and passes the bottle to her. She follows suit, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand once she’s finished.

“ _Fuck_ ,” they both breathe out slowly, in almost perfect unison, without looking at one another.

Their shoulders are nearly resting on each other’s and their fingers brush every so often as they pass each other the bottle.

“I can’t believe that you _killed a dog_ ,” Amy finally says after a while.

In the time that they have worked together, Dan has told her about his past girlfriends, Carol Hallowes, Rachel Marsh from the Speaker’s office, Nicola Mortlock and how she moved in with him, but didn’t like his untidiness or other girlfriends. He also told her about how he fucked his brother’s fiancée and broke off an engagement at Applebee’s, then ordered dessert.

They all have their skeletons, Gary included (and yes, Amy _knows_ what happened on Labor Day), but Dan has always been on another level when it comes to terrible things.

“My mom forced me to go to confession after that.”

He might have been 9 or 10 years old when it happened. His parents were too busy being self-absorbed to pay any attention. Instead, they left a stack of movies for him and his brother to watch.

Dan and his brother slipped out of the house after their babysitter fell asleep in the middle of _Toy Story_ and they ended up sneaking into an orchard with a couple of kids that always gave him a really hard time at school.

“You don’t even like them,” His brother said, as Dan scaled the fence.

“Are you coming, or what?” Dan said, ignoring him.

Dan remembers the rows of trees, the dozens of round red orbs, that littered the ground. They were halfway to the cider mill, when one of the boys found a bee’s nest and began poking at it with a branch. They taunted him with it, even though he told them he was deathly allergic.

His brother is yelling for them to stop, when the owner of the farm, who had been watching everything, came stalking towards them. They ran full speed away, laughing, but Dan’s brother stopped halfway and looked back when he realized Dan hadn’t moved.

“You okay?” The farmer asked, as he approached Dan and bent down to his level.

Dan’s face was streaked with tears, but he saw the boys snickering in the distance, so he snatched the farmer’s hat off his head in defiance and ran for his life. His lungs burned, but the danger of being stung was chased from his mind, especially after the boys seemed impressed with him.

They threw around the hat, before one of the boys flung it to the ground and stomped on it. They ended up wandering around a beaten bike path near the woods, and that’s where they saw the dog and dared him to kill it.

“Stop being such a pussy,” one of the boys said.

His parents came running after they found out he and his brother were missing, and his brother tried to cover for him. He was sure that his parents were going to get a divorce after that.

But he doesn’t mention any of this.

Amy still has trouble picturing what Dan was like as a kid. She knows vaguely about him growing up in Upstate New York, Catholic school, his brother, how weird and distant his dad was, and how his parents substituted medication and movies for parenting, but it’s hard to separate that Dan from the Dan sitting next to her.

Sometimes, she thinks maybe she can see it every time he follows Ben and Kent, hoping to gain access to their old boy’s club, and eagerly tries to prove to Sidney that he can do a better job at lobbying that she can. Or when he’s overcome with giddy excitement (the same excitement that makes him look almost manic), like the time he was promoted as the new director of policy and presentation, and when Selina first became President.

But just barely.

 _"And_ the fact that you had sex with Selina in order to win campaign manager,” she says, as she takes another swig and hands the bottle to him.

Amy spends more time with Selina than any of her other friends. That technically makes Selina her best friend, aside from Sue. She can’t believe Dan slept with her best friend. But Amy doesn’t know why she even cares so much. Plus it’s _Dan_. She had wondered before if he would ever have sex with Selina to get to the top, hadn’t she?

“I _didn’t_ ,” he says, as he drinks and passes the bottle back to her.

“I got campaign manager after we told each other what we did and I left. I can still sit on that for the next 4 years, you know.”

Amy sold him as a shit to Selina, which is why she hired him in the first place. It makes sense that him being a shit is also what got him campaign manager.

“So London was a shit show, wasn’t it?” Dan finally says, after a while.

“Daniwah,” she says as she toasts him before passing the bottle back to him and he groans, covering his face with his hand.

“What I can’t believe is that you left me at the hospital with _Jonah_.”

Amy remembers him thanking her for being an actual friend and she’s suddenly hit with a wave of guilt.

“I was merely putting you out of your misery, I mean, you were a ticking time bomb,” she begins.

“It was for the greater good. I didn’t know- I didn’t mean for—”

“Is that your way of apologizing Amy?” Dan asks, as he smirks.

“What? No,” she says, as her eyes widen. “It _isn’t_.”

“Okay,” he says, with a small smile on his lips, and she’s not entirely convinced that he believes her.

“I have to say Ames, I’m really impressed,” he says.

“I’m sure you would have done the same thing.”

“I wouldn’t have.”

“My left tit, you wouldn’t have,” Amy says.

There’s no way Dan wouldn’t throw her under the bus if it meant he’d get to the top. Dan would do anything to further his career.

“Just remember who did it first...You know, you’re always trying to convince yourself that you hate D.C. and that you’re so different. But you don’t. And you’re not.”

Amy remembers when Ed stayed over and they read papers the next morning, and how she thought that she could do it for the rest of her life, and that her sneaking into Veterans Memorial Hall, where Chung was giving a speech, had been a fluke.

But after winning over his clients, feeling the thrill of lying through her teeth to those congressman who had Dan shaking, and testifying together, she realizes that the similarities and differences begin to blur together.

_So we both jump together. You know, Butch and Sundance._

“You and me? We’re both the same, whether you like to admit it or not.”

“ _Riight_ …” Amy says, as she takes the bottle from him and takes another swig.

Dan nudges her playfully with his shoulder.

“Admit it, you missed me when I was gone, didn’t you? That’s why you needed a human comfort blanket.”

Amy’s face flushes with heat, but she refuses to back down.

“Is that why you couldn’t lobby without me?”

“I’d like to remind you that you couldn’t go two days without calling me this week.”

“Yeah, for a job you’re helping me get when you don’t have to.”

Dan smiles, but doesn’t say anything. Instead, his fingers lightly brushes her hand and he slowly takes it in his as though he’s testing her.

Amy’s heart speeds up. She doesn’t know if it’s the wine, but his hand feels so good in hers. She gets up before she can do anything stupid, like close her fingers over his.

“We’re out of wine,” she says as she places the empty bottle into her recycling bin, and he gets up.

When she turns around, he’s standing so close to her that she can see his eyelashes, long and dark, the freckles lightly dotting his skin, the one on his bottom lip.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Stop that,” Amy says.

“What?” He says, feigning innocence with the same look he had at the bar.

“Yeah, you don’t think I know you’re fucking with me?” She says.

Dan shakes his head.

“I’m not,” He says, looking like he means it, before leaning in to kiss her, as though he’s asking the question.

Amy usually weighs the pros and cons, makes a list and then a backup list for the list and plans out every detail, instead of just blindly following her intuition, the same intuition that led her out of the studio during election night. But it’s her intuition that pushes her to bridge the gap between the two of them.

Amy kisses him with her answer.

And like her leaving felt so right, so does this.


	7. Chapter 7

Dan presses Amy up against the island and plants soft kisses down her neck before turning back to her mouth.

He reaches down to her leggings as they kiss, pulling at the elastic band, before slowly slipping his fingers in. His hands are cold from holding the wine bottle. Amy buries her head in his neck, as his fingers begin to trace her clit through her panties. It’s been so long since anyone has touched her this way and knowing that _Dan_ is the one doing it makes her feel light-headed. She can already feel the sensation building, even though he’s barely touched her. Amy doesn’t want him to know that, so she places her hand over his, gently stopping him, before removing it from her panties. He blinks, confused, until she takes his hand and drags him towards her bedroom.

Once they’re in, Amy pulls him in front of her and takes off his hoodie and his shirt. She then removes her leggings and he pulls her sweatshirt over her head. As they kiss, Amy reaches down to unbutton and unzip his jeans. His jeans drop to the floor and he barely has the chance to step out of them, before she pushes him onto the bed, straddling him.

“ _Fuck_ , Ames,” he breathes out, as she grinds down onto him. He reaches for her hips.

Dan licks his lips before he leans forward to kiss her. His hands trace her hips, and then her thighs, and back up to rest on the small of her back, before they travel to cup the outside of her bra. He gently runs his thumbs over the lace, feeling her nipples harden. His tongue is in her mouth and her hair falls slightly around his face as she deepens the kiss. The friction feels good, but it’s not enough. She wants him to touch her.

Amy breaks the kiss and pushes him back a little, with a hand on his chest. She undoes the clasp and on her bra, letting it fall over her shoulders. Amy removes it and tosses it to the floor without breaking eye contact and Dan swallows as his eyes flick down to her breasts. He then leans down slowly and takes her breast in his mouth, swiping his tongue over her nipple. Amy throws her head back, tangling her fingers in his hair.

“Dan,” she breathes out, as he works on her other breast.

His mouth feels hot on her skin and she wants him _now_. Dan must have the same idea because he decides to flip them over in one fluid motion, and her breasts lightly brush against his chest.

She tugs at his boxers, pulling them down. He removes them and pulls off her panties, before leaning down to kiss her. She gasps into his mouth when he slides against her.

“Amy, you’re so fucking wet.”

“You’re such a shit,” Amy pants, but she moans when he does it again, this time, slower, and more deliberately.

Amy feels so good against him and he doesn’t think he can hold out that much longer.

“Amy, do you have?” He breathes out.

“Yeah,” she says, nodding, as she props herself up on her elbows and he sits back a bit, aching from the lack of contact.

He admires her breasts as she reaches into her drawer, pushing aside her second phone, and pulls out a box of condoms. When she opens it, Dan notices that almost all of them are gone. He remembers that most condoms don’t fit him and is about to say that he has one in the pocket of his jeans, now on the floor, when she hands one to him.

He stares down at the label.

Dan can’t _believe_ that he is the same size as Ed fucking Webster (he’s always had pride in King Danny. Even _Ben_ was impressed by his prostate control) and that Amy had sex with that Quaker. _No one’s_ a fucking Quaker.

“Dan, what are you waiting for?” Amy says, breathlessly.

He looks up at her and she looks positively _wrecked_. Her cheeks are flushed, her lips are red and slightly swollen, her hair is a mess, and he can see the small trace of a hickey forming on her neck. He loves seeing her like this, especially knowing that he’s the one responsible. He’s here with _Amy_. And he realizes that he doesn’t care about anything else.

“Absolutely nothing.”

Dan fumbles with the condom and accidentally drops it on the bed by her waist. Amy picks it up and decides to tear open the packaging herself. She tosses the wrapper into the trash and hands the condom to him.

“Are you going to fuck me or what, Egan?” She says, and he laughs.

He puts the condom on and leans down, putting an arm around her lower back, adjusting their positions a little bit.

“Come here,” he says, as he kisses her.

Amy lets out a shuddering breath as Dan slowly pushes in and they start to build up a rhythm.

Dan thrusts into her and Amy wraps her legs around him, pulling him in deeper.

“Oh god,” she says, as he fucks her harder and her nails dig into his skin.

“Fuck, right there,” she pants out.

It feels so good. Nothing should feel _this_ good. Amy feels like her head is spinning.

The pressure builds and falls, and his thrusts start to become erratic.

“Amy,” he says, roughly against her shoulder, and he can tell that she’s close.

He reaches down and runs his fingers over her clit once, and then twice. And suddenly her body stops moving as she clenches around him. Then, everything disappears except for a hot tingly sensation and a ringing in her ears.

Dan has a hard time catching his breath as he speeds up. The way Amy says his name when she comes is so fucking hot that it’s enough to send him over. And the waves that course through his body are so intense that his vision goes blurry. Amy is still shaking when he comes. Dan collapses onto her, unable to move, or think for a second.

 _“Fuck,”_ Dan breathes out, as he finally comes to and he shifts his body, so that he’s not crushing her.

 _“Fuck,”_ Amy repeats in agreement, and they take the moment to catch their breaths.

Their foreheads are still lightly touching, and both of them are sweaty and exhausted. Dan pulls out and tosses the condom into the trash before leaning back over her.

“You were great,” he says, as he moves a strand of hair away from her face and leans down to kiss her cheek.

It’s a surprisingly tender move.

When she looks up at him, he has this open look on his face that she can’t describe.

“Yeah, I know,” she says, trying to ignore what she thinks might be _actual feelings._

“You know, _we_ could still be great.”

“We could?” She asks, with their lips inches apart.

“Oh yeah,” he says nodding, as he smiles and leans in to kiss her again.


	8. Epilogue

(Weeks later)

Amy wakes up to the sound of both her phones vibrating, and his, in his pants somewhere on the floor. Dan’s arm is slung around her and she squints as her eyes adjust to the brightness. He shifts behind her as she reaches for the phone sitting on her dresser and leans back to check her messages.

“Oh, _fuck_.”

“What is it?” Dan says, mumbling into her hair.

“Selina’s President.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoyed this as much as I did writing it! Please let me know what you think. I can't wait to see what happens in season 5 and if Selina becomes President or Veep again. Might have to change the ending ;)


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